1/20/25 | Elliotte Friedman said on 32 Thoughts that he doesn’t believe Zibanejad and/or Braden Schneider were part of the potential package going back to Vancouver and that while he “could be wrong,” he doesn’t think Alexis Lafreniere was part of it either. (Sportsnet)
1/19/25 | Larry Brooks writes that the Rangers and Vancouver had spoken this week but that he couldn’t confirm that a “hypothetical” trade was close. He says that Mika Zibanejad will not be going to Vancouver but that Alexis Lafreniere’s name has been “prominent” in the trade talks. (NY Post)
1/18/25 | Elliotte Friedman said on Hockey Night in Canada that “JT Miller I expect is going to play tonight unless something changes in the last minute but there was a time over the last 24-hours where JT Miller was not going to play and held out of the lineup because talks were progressing on a trade, I believe that team to be the New York Rangers.”
He added “I don’t know exactly what happened, but that trade is off right now. There is nothing close that would prevent Miller from playing but things had progressed to a certain point where it definitely looked like he wasn’t going to play.”
Miller’s agent says that Miller has not requested a trade. (Dhaliwal)
Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said the other night of Miller, “He’s caught in between. Seems like every time he’s on the ice, something bad happens. I think he’s got some bad luck, but he’s also got some reads that he’s got to look at himself right now and focus on some of these reads. … I think he’s trying sometimes, but I think the focus level has to get a little higher.” (The Score)
Adam Rotter: There is so much about this that we don’t know that it’s hard to really comment. What caused the breakdown? Was it really that close to happening? Is this totally dead? And most importantly, what were the Rangers going to give up? The Miller/Canucks relationship seems over and it seems like more of a “when” and not ‘if”Miller gets traded, but will it end up being to the Rangers?
Lafreniere would be a big price though if he is truly on the table. I wouldn’t be opposed to a Miller for Miller swap with the Rangers sending K’Andre Miller to Vancouver. I wonder if the breakdown was with each team believing that the other team needed to add more. Vancouver probably feels they are trading a guy who scored 100 points last year and the Rangers should be adding more and the Rangers probably feel, especially in the case of Alexis Lafreniere and probably to some degree with K’Andre Miller, that they are trading potentially foundational pieces and deserve more.
If I’m the Rangers then I do whatever possible to hold onto Lafreniere and hope that some of Miller’s better qualities rub off on him. I’d also just hate, even though Miller is signed to a long-term deal, giving up on Lafreniere. You do need to give to get someone like Miller but Lafreniere showed in the playoffs last year how good he can be. He, like most everyone else, has struggled this season, but moving him, even though Miller basically replaces him in the lineup and in contract terms, would be tough. It’s also hard to see how the best version of the Rangers doesn’t include both of them.